TEMECULA: Robbery suspect to stand trial

A Lake Elsinore man accused of a failed robbery attempt at a Temecula car wash must stand trial, a judge ruled Thursday at Southwest Justice Center.

Authorities say defendant Roth Steven Anderson, a previously convicted felon who turns 24 Tuesday, could face as much as 31 years to life in prison if found guilty of all the counts against him.

The charges stem from his alleged July 23 attempt to hold up a car wash customer by threatening him with a fake handgun.

An investigator who testified during Thursday's hearing, which was held so the judge could determine if there is enough evidence to warrant a trial, said the victim told him he was cleaning his vehicle at a car wash on Moreno Road in Old Town Temecula when the incident occurred.

"He said (the suspect) came up to him, pointed a gun at him and told him to give him his wallet," said Temecula police Officer Jeret McClellan.

In response to a question by Deputy District Attorney Gregory Albright, McClellan said the victim assumed the weapon, which was actually a Walther CP99 air gun, was a real firearm.

"He said he was scared. He thought he was going to get shot," McClellan said of the victim's response.

The victim reacted by spraying the suspect with the high-pressure spray-gun he was using, prompting the would-be robber to run off, McClellan said.

With the help of the business' surveillance camera, McClellan said, he found a clear image of the suspect and photographed it on his cellphone. He said the picture helped identify Anderson after he was detained later that day by Officer Joshua Rhodes, the second witness Albright called to the stand Thursday.

Rhodes said he looked for the suspect at a nearby Denny's restaurant on Rancho California Road where he located a backpack, in which mail bearing Anderson's name and the imitation weapon were found.

Officers located Anderson next door in front of a convenience store smoking a cigarette and he was taken into custody, Rhodes said.

Earlier in the hearing, McClellan testified that he took the victim to have a look at the suspect.

"As soon as he looked at him, he said, 'That's him,'" the deputy said.

Under cross-examination by defense attorney Amir Madjd, McClellan said the victim identified Anderson from a distance of about 40 yards and that Anderson was handcuffed at the time.

Judge Kelly Hansen ruled there was sufficient evidence to indicate Anderson's potential guilt and set a hearing later in December in preparation for the trial.